This article is about federal gun laws. For state and local gun laws, see Gun laws in the United States by state. Right to keep and bear arms in the U.S. In the United States, the right to keep and bear arms is modulated by a variety of state and federal statutes. These laws generally regulate the manufacture, trade, possession, transfer, record keeping, transport, and destruction of firearms, ammunition, and firearms accessories.[1] They are enforced by state, local and the federal agencies which include the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). The private right to keep and bear arms is protected by the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution. This protection was not legally explicit until the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) that the Amendment defined and protected an individual right, unconnected with militia service. A subsequent holding in McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010) ruled that the Second Amendment is incorporated by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and thereby applies to state and local laws.  In New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen (2022) the Court struck down New York's "may issue" policy of granting concealed carry licenses, and further held that any regulation of firearms in the United States is presumed unconstitutional unless the state can prove it is rooted in the country's text, history, and tradition. Most federal gun laws are found in the following acts:[2][3] National Firearms Act (NFA) (1934): Taxes the manufacture and transfer of, and mandates the registration of Title II weapons such as machine guns, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, heavy weapons, explosive ordnance, suppressors, and disguised or improvised firearms. Federal Firearms Act of 1938 (FFA): Requires that gun manufacturers, importers, and those in the business of selling firearms have a Federal Firearms License (FFL). Prohibits the transfer of firearms to certain classes of people, such as convicted felons. Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (1968): Prohibited interstate trade in handguns, increased the minimum age to 21 for buying handguns. Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA): Focuses primarily on regulating interstate commerce in firearms by generally prohibiting interstate firearms transfers except among licensed manufacturers, dealers and importers. Firearm Owners Protection Act (FOPA) (1986): Revised and partially repealed the Gun Control Act of 1968. Prohibited the sale to civilians of automatic firearms manufactured after the date of the law's passage. Required ATF approval of transfers of automatic firearms. Undetectable Firearms Act (1988): Effectively criminalizes, with a few exceptions, the manufacture, importation, sale, shipment, delivery, possession, transfer, or receipt of firearms with less than 3.7 oz of metal content. Gun-Free School Zones Act (1990): Prohibits unauthorized individuals from knowingly possessing a firearm at a place that the individual knows, or has reasonable cause to believe, is a school zone. Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (1993): Requires background checks on most firearm purchasers, depending on seller and venue. Federal Assault Weapons Ban (1994–2004): Banned semiautomatics that looked like assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices. The law expired in 2004. Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (2004): Granted law enforcement officers and former law enforcement officers the right to carry a concealed firearm in any jurisdiction in the United States, regardless of state or local laws, with certain exceptions. Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (2005): Prevents firearms manufacturers and licensed dealers from being held liable for negligence if a crime is committed using their products. Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (2022): Expands background checks for purchasers under 21 to include their juvenile records, requires more sellers to have an FFL, funds state crisis intervention programs, further criminalizes arms trafficking and straw purchases, and closes the “boyfriend loophole”. Fugitives, those convicted of a felony with a sentence exceeding 1 year, past or present, and those who were involuntarily admitted to a mental facility are prohibited from purchasing a firearm; unless rights restored. Forty-five states have a provision in their state constitutions similar to the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, which protects the right to keep and bear arms. The exceptions are California, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, and New York. In New York, however, the statutory civil rights laws contain a provision virtually identical to the Second Amendment.[4][5] Additionally, the U.S. Supreme Court held in McDonald v. Chicago (2010) that the protections of the Second Amendment to keep and bear arms for self-defense in one's home apply against state governments and their political subdivisions.[6] In New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, the Supreme Court ruled that states could not require "proper cause" or a "special need" when issuing a license for concealed carry.[7] See also: History of concealed carry in the U.S. Important events regarding gun legislation occurred in the following years.[8] In 1934, the National Firearms Act (NFA) was signed into law under President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Administration in an effort to curb prohibition-era violence.[9][10] Between 1920 and 1933 the homicide rate in the United States had been rising year-over-year as an example of the unintended consequences of passing Prohibition into law, and the concomitant violence associated with making illegal a widely in-demand product.[9][11] The NFA is considered to be the first federal legislation to enforce gun control in the United States, imposing a $200 tax, equivalent to approximately $3,942 in 2022, on the manufacture and transfer of Title II weapons. It also mandated the registration of machine guns, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, heavy weapons, explosive ordnance, suppressors, and disguised or improvised firearms. When Prohibition was ultimately repealed in 1933, and the monopoly on alcohol maintained by organized crime was ended, there was a significant decline in the homicide rate.[9][10] In fact, "...homicides continued to diminish each year for eleven years straight [after the repeal of Prohibition]."[9][11] In 1938, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Federal Firearms Act of 1938 (FFA) into law, requiring that all gun-related businesses must have a Federal Firearms License (FFL). In 1939, through the court case United States v. Miller, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that Congress could regulate interstate selling sawed-off shotguns through the National Firearms Act of 1934, deeming that such a weapon has no reasonable relationship with the efficiency of a well-regulated militia. In 1968, following the spree of political assassinations including: the assassination of John F. Kennedy, the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, and the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, President Lyndon B. Johnson, pushed Congress for the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA). It repealed and replaced the FFA, regulated “destructive devices” (such as bombs, mines, grenades, and other explosives), expanded the definition of machine gun, required the serialization of manufactured or imported guns, banned importing military-style weapons, and imposed a 21 age minimum on the purchasing of handguns from FFLs. The GCA also prohibited the selling of firearms to felons and the mentally ill. In 1986, contrary to prior gun legislation, the Firearm Owners Protection Act (FOPA) (1986), passed under the Ronald Reagan administration, enacted protections for gun owners. It prohibited a national registry of dealer records, limited ATF inspections to conduct annual inspections (unless multiple infractions have been observed), allowed licensed dealers to sell firearms at "gun shows" in their state, and loosened regulations on the sale and transfer of ammunition. However, the FOPA also prohibited civilian ownership or transfer of machine guns made after May 19, 1986, and redefined "silencer" to include silencer parts. After the 2004 expiration of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, the firearms industry embraced the AR-15's political and cultural significance for marketing.[12] Almost every major gunmaker produces its own version, with ~16 million Americans owning at least one.[12] In 1993, the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, named after a White House press secretary who was disabled during the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan, was signed into law under the presidency of Bill Clinton. This act required that background checks must be conducted on gun purchases and established a criminal background check system maintained by the FBI. In 1994, the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act was signed into law under the presidency of Bill Clinton, which included the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, effectively banned the manufacturing, selling, and possession of specific military-style assault weapons such as AR-15 style rifles and banned high-capacity ammunition magazines that held over 10 rounds. Banned arms that were previously legally possessed were grandfathered. The ban expired in September 2004. In 2003, the Tiahrt Amendment proposed by Kansas Representative, Todd Tiahrt, limited the ATF to only release information from its firearms trace database to only law enforcement agencies or a prosecutors in connection with a criminal investigation. In 2005, The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act was signed into law under the presidency of George W. Bush. This act protected gun manufacturers from being named in federal or state civil suits by those who were victims of crimes involving guns made by that company. In 2010, the Supreme Court ruled in the case McDonald v. Chicago that the Second Amendment is incorporated and thus applies against the states. In 2016, the Supreme Court ruled in the case Caetano v. Massachusetts that "the Second Amendment extends, prima facie, to all instruments that constitute bearable arms, even those that were not in existence at the time of the founding". The right to keep and bear arms in the United States is protected by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.[13] While there have been contentious debates on the nature of this right, there was a lack of clear federal court rulings defining the right until the two landmark U.S. Supreme Court cases of District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) and McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010). Like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose: For example, concealed weapons prohibitions have been upheld under the Amendment or state analogues. The Court's opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms.[15][16] The four dissenting justices argued that the majority had broken prior precedent on the Second Amendment,[17] and took the position that the amendment refers to an individual right, but only in the context of militia service.[18][19][20][21] In McDonald, the Supreme Court ruled that, because of the incorporation of the Bill of Rights, the guarantee of an individual right to bear arms applies to state and local gun control laws and not just federal laws.[22] The Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects the right to carry guns in public for self-defense in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen in 2022.[23][24] Previously, federal appeals courts had issued conflicting rulings on this point. For example, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled in 2012 that it does, saying, "The Supreme Court has decided that the amendment confers a right to bear arms for self-defense, which is as important outside the home as inside."[25] However, the Tenth Circuit Court ruled in 2013 that it does not, saying, "In light of our nation's extensive practice of restricting citizen's freedom to carry firearms in a concealed manner, we hold that this activity does not fall within the scope of the Second Amendment's protections."[26] More recently, the Ninth Circuit Court ruled in its 2016 decision Peruta v. San Diego County that the Second Amendment does not guarantee the right of gun owners to carry concealed firearms in public.[27] U.S. gun sales have risen in the 21st century, peaking in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.[28] "NICS" is the FBI's National Instant Background Check System. Lawful permanent residents of the United States (also known as "green card" holders)[31] Aliens (or foreign nationals) who have been lawfully admitted to the United States as refugees[32] Aliens (or foreign nationals) who have been lawfully admitted to the United States under nonimmigrant visas[33] but only if they fall under one of the following exceptions:[34][35] has received a waiver from the United States Attorney General, as long as the waiver petition shows this would be in the interests of justice and would not jeopardize the public safety under 18 U.S. Code § 922(y)(3)(c)[36] non-resident of any US state unless the receipt of firearms are for lawful sporting purposes[37] Each state has its own laws regarding who is allowed to own or possess firearms, and there are various state and federal permitting and background check requirements. Controversy continues over which classes of people, such as convicted felons, people with severe or violent mental illness,[38] and people on the federal no-fly list, should be excluded.[39][40] Laws in these areas vary considerably, and enforcement is in flux. has been convicted in any court of a "crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year";[42] has been lawfully admitted as an alien under a nonimmigrant visa and is not exempt under 18 U.S.C. § 922(y)(2);[45] These categories are listed on ATF Form 4473 – Firearms Transaction Record background check form.[46] According to the US Sentencing Commission, approximately 5,000 to 6,000 prohibited persons are convicted of unlawfully receiving or possessing a firearm each year.[47] In 2017, over 25.2 million background checks were performed.[48] Under United States law, any company or gunsmith which in the course of its business manufactures firearms of finished frames and receivers, or modifies firearms for resale, must be licensed as a manufacturer of firearms.[49] These regulations do not apply to manufacturers of kit components and non-firearms like so-called "80% receivers".[50] ^ a b "Summary of Federal Firearms Laws" (PDF). U.S. Dept. of Justice. September 2010. Retrieved January 19, 2021. ^ "Federal Gun Control Legislation – Timeline". Infoplease.com. Retrieved November 14, 2013. ^ "Crime Control: The Federal Response". Policyalmanac.org. Archived from the original on April 19, 2014. Retrieved November 14, 2013. ^ Volokh, Eugene (2006). "State Constitutional Right to Keep and Bear Arms Provisions". UCLA School of Law. Retrieved November 23, 2011. ^ "New York Civil Rights – Article 2 – § 4 Right to Keep and Bear Arms". Law and Legal Research. March 30, 2010. Retrieved November 23, 2011. ^ Liptak, Adam (June 28, 2010). "Justices Extend Firearm Rights in 5-to-4 Ruling", New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2015. ^ "New York Gun Carry Ban Unconstitutional, Supreme Court Rules in FPC-Supported Case; Court Addresses "Scrutiny" for Second Amendment Litigation". Firearms Policy Coalition. June 23, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2022. ^ Gray, Sarah. "Here's a Timeline of the Major Gun Control Laws in America". time.com. Time. Retrieved April 17, 2019. ^ a b c d "Prohibition-Era Gang Violence Spurred Congress To Pass First Gun Law". www.npr.org. National Public Radio (NPR). Retrieved February 4, 2022. ^ a b Burrus, Trevor (January 30, 2013). "How Shameful Policies Increase America's Gun Violence". www.huffpost.com. The Huffington Post. Retrieved February 4, 2022. ^ a b Stooksberry, Jay (August 8, 2016). "Want to Stop Gun Violence? End The War On Drugs". fee.org. Foundation for Economic Education. Retrieved February 4, 2022. ^ Greenhouse, Linda (June 27, 2008). "Justices Rule for Individual Gun Rights", The New York Times. Retrieved February 15, 2015. ^ Cooper, Matthew (January 19, 2013). "Why Liberals Should Thank Justice Scalia for Gun Control: His ruling in a key Supreme Court case leans on original intent and will let Obama push his proposals". National Journal. National Journal Group. Archived from the original on January 7, 2014. Retrieved January 6, 2014. ^ Linda Greenhouse (June 27, 2008). "Justices Rule for Individual Gun Rights". The New York Times. Retrieved June 27, 2008. ^ Bhagwat, A. (2010). The Myth of Rights: The Purposes and Limits of Constitutional Rights. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 16–17. ISBN 9780195377781. Justice Stevens begins his opinion by conceding Justice Scalia's point that the Second Amendment right is an 'individual' one, in the sense that '[s]urely it protects a right that can be enforced by individuals.' He concludes, however, that all of the historical context, and all of the evidence surrounding the drafting of the Second Amendment, supports the view that the Second Amendment protects only a right to keep and bear arms in the context of militia service. ^ Bennett, R.; Solum, L. (2011). Constitutional originalism : A Debate. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. p. 29. ISBN 9780801447938. In both dissents, the clear implication is that if the purpose of the Second Amendment is militia–related, it follows that the amendment does not create a legal rule that protects an individual right to possess and carry fire arms outside the context of service in a state militia. ^ Schultz, D.A. (2009). Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution. New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 201. ISBN 9781438126777. Justice John Paul Stevens argued that the debate over the Second Amendment was not whether it protected an individual or collective right but, instead, over the scope of the right to bear arms. ^ Liptak, Adam (June 28, 2010). "Justices Extend Firearm Rights in 5-to-4 Ruling", The New York Times. Retrieved February 15, 2015. ^ Liptak, Adam (April 15, 2013). "Justices Refuse Case on Gun Law in New York", The New York Times. Retrieved February 15, 2015. ^ "New York gun rights case before Supreme Court with massive consequences". July 23, 2021. ^ Long, Ray; Sweeney, Annie; Garcia, Monique (December 11, 2012). "Concealed Carry: Court Strikes Down Illinois' Ban", Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 15, 2015. ^ Associated Press (February 23, 2013). "Court Finds No Right to Conceal a Firearm", The New York Times. Retrieved February 15, 2015. ^ Nagourney, Adam; Eckholm, Erik (June 9, 2016). "2nd Amendment Does Not Guarantee Right to Carry Concealed Guns, Court Rules", The New York Times. Retrieved June 9, 2016. ^ ● Gun sale data from Brownlee, Chip (December 31, 2023). "Gun Violence by the Numbers in 2023". The Trace. Archived from the original on January 28, 2024.● NICS firearm check data downloaded via link at "NICS Firearm Background Checks: Month/Year" (PDF). FBI.gov. Federal Bureau of Investigation. January 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 29, 2024. ^ "U.S.C. Title 18 – Crimes and Criminal Procedure". www.govinfo.gov. ^ "May a nonimmigrant alien who has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa possess a firearm or ammunition in the United States?". Atf.gov. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Retrieved November 2, 2017.  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. ^ "Gun Conviction and Immigration Law". Michigan Criminal Attorneys Blog. December 8, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2022. ^ Matter of H-N-, 22 I&N Dec. 1039  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain., 1040-45 (BIA 1999) (en banc). ^ 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(13)(A) ("The terms 'admission' and 'admitted' mean, with respect to an alien, the lawful entry of the alien into the United States after inspection and authorization by an immigration officer."); Matter of D-K-, 25 I&N Dec. 761  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain., 765-66 (BIA 2012). ^ "18 U.S. Code § 922 – Unlawful acts". LII / Legal Information Institute. ^ "May a nonimmigrant alien who has been admitted to the United States under a nonimmigrant visa possess a firearm or ammunition in the United States? | Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives". www.atf.gov. Retrieved March 19, 2024. ^ "18 U.S. Code § 922 – Unlawful acts". LII / Legal Information Institute. Retrieved November 2, 2017. ^ "27 CFR 478.29a - Acquisition of firearms by nonresidents". www.govregs.com. Retrieved March 19, 2024. ^ Taylor, Jessica (February 2, 2017). "House Votes To Overturn Obama Rule Restricting Gun Sales To The Severely Mentally Ill". Npr.org. Retrieved November 2, 2017. ^ https://www.atf.gov/firearms/identify-prohibited-persons  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. ^ Holloway v. Attorney General, 948 F.3d 164  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain., 169 (3d Cir. 2020); 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(20); 18 U.S.C. § 927. ^ https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/21cfr/21usc/802.htm  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. ^ United States v. Torres, 911 F.3d 1253  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain., 1255 (9th Cir. 2019); 8 U.S.C. § 1365(b) ("An illegal alien ... is any alien ... who is in the United States unlawfully...."). ^ Rehaif v. United States, 139 S. Ct. 2191  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain., 2194 (2019); United States v. Singh, 979 F.3d 697  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. (9th Cir. 2020) ("B1/B2 nonimmigrant visa holders do not automatically qualify for § 922(y)(2)'s exception and, by a plain reading of the statute, are subject to the prohibition on gun possession."); United States v. Gear, No. 19-10353  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. (9th Cir. January 19, 2021); United States v. Mora-Alcaraz, No. 19-10323  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. (9th Cir. January 21, 2021). ^ https://www.atf.gov/firearms/docs/4473-part-1-firearms-transaction-record-over-counter-atf-form-53009/download  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. ^ https://www.ussc.gov/research/quick-facts/section-922g-firearms  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. ^ NICS Firearm Background Checks, November 30, 1998 – October 31, 2020  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. ^ "Firearms – Frequently Asked Questions – Manufacturers". ATF.gov. 2015. Archived from the original on July 10, 2014. Retrieved February 24, 2015. ^ Dan Zimmerman (July 1, 2023). "Federal Judge Throws Out ATF's Frame or Receiver Rule That Redefined What Constitutes a Firearm". TTAG.com. TTAG. Retrieved July 4, 2023. This page was last edited on 29 April 2024, at 10:38 (UTC). additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.